After all the years these little cars have been around, I'm constantly amazed at the newly discovered minutia that surfaces. I never heard the one about the power seat sitting further off the floor than a manual seat.
So you suckered me into going out to the garage to take some measurements. I measured two manual seats and one Dial-A-Matic. I can't see where there is any real difference. One thing that changes your perception of seating comfort and space is the amount of rake on the seat back. Get the top of the seat back adjusted as far back as you can without rubbing on something, and it almost feels like you're in a real car.
As far as reliability is concerned; the Dial-A-Matic works great but it is seldom used. The control is set for full back and full down and this keeps it from cycling every time you turn the key. Unless you have multiple users of a car with conventional power seats, there is no reason not to set it and forget it.
There is some annoying head room issues with the soft top though. The side rails over the windows are considerably thicker than the hard top side rails. For this reason, it causes you to "duck" your head more when entering and exiting and sometimes occupies the same space where your head wants to be when you are seated.
I agree with you about minimizing the old fashioned power accessories, but they do seem to be reasonably reliable IF properly used and maintained.
Good Luck, Tom D.
P.S. Regardless of what any T-Bird expert says; there is no way a manual seat will give you another 1 1/2" of head room over a power seat.
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